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Monday, January 9, 2012

No Doves interviews Fangs on Fur

Fangs on Fur. Great current deathrock band? Or -- greatest? They now have Christ Vs Warhol's Steve James playing bass for them (see below). And yet we ALREADY interviewed Christ vs Warhol! But still -- this Fangs on Fur interview was still damn fun.

NO DOVES FLY HERE: I'll go ahead and ask a standard question first: Who came up with the name "Fangs on Fur," and what does it mean?

F-Boy: I did. I misheard what a friend was saying and I said, "FANGS ON FUR, THAT'S PERFECT!" My friend tried to correct me and before he could tell me what he meant to say, I told him never to tell me. I still don't know what he actually said.

F-Girl: At the time we were in another band. F-Boy said "Fangs on Fur," and I flipped out. I said, "This is going to be the name of our first album." That band broke up and F-boy and I started Fangs on Fur ten minutes later! As to what it means? It could mean anything. It could be violent when it needs to be, it could be sexual if it wants to be, and it could be defiant when it has to be.

NDFH: When did Fangs on Fur start, and who is currently in the band?

F-Boy: FOF started in the dark, on a balcony, in June 2006. We played our first show in September of that year.

F-Girl: Our Drummer is J. Smith, who we love. We had an instant connection with him and I couldn't imagine FOF without him. He's the heart that brings the band to life.

F-Boy: We have Steven James from Christ vs. Warhol on bass. There's a similar frame of reference and he's as good on bass as he is on guitar.

NDFH: Recently you all played some shows that, from over here in Texas, look pretty exciting: shows with bands like Alaric from Oakland, and you had Steven James of Christ vs Warhol playing guitar for you. Is there a resurgence in California Deathrock going on, do you think? Or is it just getting more noticed? Seems like a lot of good new bands are coming from the state.

F-Girl: They're not all good!

F-Boy: Steven's playing bass. It's a funny thing about Steven....

F-Girl: Um... how should we start this off.....

F-Boy: The first time I met Steven was the first time we playedRelease The Bats. He and F-Girl where in the midst of a fist fight-

F-Girl: Hahahahhahaha bwauahhhh!

F-Boy: .........with F-Girl! I was trying to keep it from escalating between her and Marzia (Rangel, also of Christ vs. Warhol). Uh, one thing led to another and now we are all good friends.

NDFH: Do you ever have anyone call your sound "old school" or "purist"? Do you think it fits? I get sort of frustrated when we play completely contemporary bands like you guys, or Ciril, or Lost Tribe, or Christ vs Warhol, and we get called an "old school" event night, when we make it point to try to play as many new bands as possible.

F-Boy: Purist? No not really. I'm sure there's people out there who think that.

F-Girl: A lot of the "new " bands go for that classic sound. It's so easy to criticize. Either a band sounds too much like the old school, or not enough. We just write the music that comes out. Sometimes it sounds like THIS and sometimes it sounds like THAT. People can put us in any category they want. That's not our concern. You need to know your identity before someone chooses it for you.

F-Boy: We want to push the envelope. Our new album sounds completely different from the first but it's still Fangs on Fur.

F-Girl: Is the blues "the blues" if it's green?!

NDFH: Who would you say some of the artistic influences on the band are? Musically, lyrically, or otherwise? Any favorites of band members that listeners might be surprised to hear about? People might think bands like Action Pact or Lost Cherrees, Rubella Ballet, maybe Penetration -- but is that necessarily the case?

NDFH: A song like "Dead or Alive," which is one of my favorites, seems to be about an unhealthy, self-destructive love obsession, but others are more socio-political. Is there a primary lyrics-writer, and if so, what are the topics that tend to fascinate you the most, or consume your thinking the most?

F-Girl: Primary Lyricist.... That depends on the song. F-boy and I both write the songs based on an idea that I had or something he came up with. We tend to write songs about personal experience. Sometimes we write about things that need to be said.

F-Boy: To right a wrong or to call attention to something we think is important.

F-Girl: Some songs are like spells.

NDFH: Any plans to tour the US? Texas would love to have you! And also, what releases are up and coming, if any?

F-Boy: Actually, we have a new 7" single coming out in about a month.

F-Girl: Artifice Shank and Lay Me Down!

F-Boy: We've been Recording a new album and it should be out before summer.

F-Girl: We've been trying to get out to Texas for a while now.

F-Boy: We'd like to get out there this year, possibly around the fall.

Francis Barbi: FOF is going on tour in 2012. Where they go, nobody knows. How they get there -- well that remains to be seen....

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The First Wednesday of every month: gothic rock, post-punk, and deathrock in Austin, TX, at Chain Drive (504 Willow St.), w/ DJs Damage Done, Straylight, and Nexus. The next No Doves is Wed, October 3rd, 2012. Email: nodovesATX@gmail.com